Is the Orange County housing juice worth the squeeze?

“To live, we must daily break the body
and spill the blood of Creation.
When we do this knowingly, lovingly, skillfully, reverently,
it is a sacrament. When we do it ignorantly, greedily, clumsily, destructively, it is a desecration.”

This, remember, is a love story. This life, this time, it’s a gift. And it’s my prayer that when you are surrounded by mystery and uncertainty, your eyes look up to the bright morning star. It is my prayer that you love your neighborhoods—those not even born yet, by caring for this planet. And if you do, it will be very, very good.—Matthew Sleeth, MD, Blessed Earth

The definition of GMO* foods is that a gene from one species is inserted into another, often unrelated, species. For example, soybeans that have been genetically modified to resist Roundup herbicide are inserted with genes from bacteria, the cauliflower virus, and petunias. This is something that does not occur in nature and is not the same as cross breeding.

After an unfavorable consumer reaction to the introduction of genetically modified foods in our grocery stores, food that contains GM ingredients has been stealthily placed on our grocery shelves for approximately twenty years now. Some of the most common GM foods are corn, soy, canola, sugar beets, and cottonseed oil as well as Hawaiian papaya, alfalfa, some yellow squash and zucchini. Derivatives of these GMOs are found in most packaged foods (Fructose is often derived from GM corn; lecithin is often derived from GM soy; even citric acid and vitamin C are often derived from GM corn). The USDA states that approximately 80% of packaged food contains GMOs.

Since these GM foods have been around for about twenty years, you might think that there is nothing to worry about. However, unlike the strict tests that are required for drugs, the FDA does not require any safety or health tests on GM foods. In fact, no long-term studies have been conducted to determine the safety of these foods.

However, the concerns are many. They include health risk, damage to nature that might not be reversible, food security, farmers in peril, and lack of transparency and independent scientific study.

Nature provides us what we need to live. We may come up with all sorts of manmade materials, but we can’t make something out of nothing. Without the inputs from nature, none of our manmade materials can be made. With the development of GMO seeds, biotech companies are patenting and attempting to own nature. We can push nature, but only so far. Nature will only put up with this to a point. Then watch out.

Biotech companies are patenting nature. Seed patenting “treat[s] the diversity of farmer’s breeding and nature’s evolution as illegal.” (Vandana Shiva) Is it just that nature is patented and owned by a few?

Biotech companies claim that GM crops would not crossbred with non-GM crops and pests would not become resistant to GMOs. However, nature has its own way in mind. Signs of superweeds and super bugs have appeared. “There’s ‘mounting evidence’ that Monsanto Co. (MON) corn that’s genetically modified to control insects is losing its effectiveness in the Midwest, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said.”—Bloomberg News, “‘Mounting Evidence’ of Bug-Resistant Corn Seen by EPA”

A University of Notre Dame and Loyola University study showed proteins from GMO crops in Indiana waterways. And U.S. Geological Survey studies revealed that glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup herbicide, was evident in up to 60 to 100 percent of all air and rain samples tested during two growing seasons in Mississippi and Iowa. This means that Roundup lingers in the environment, which creates potential health risks to humans and the environment.

Despite biotech companies claims that genetically modified foods (GMOs) are safe, evidence shows that there is room for concern:

Studies by the American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM) found that animals that were feed GM foods developed immune, infertility, and gastrointestinal problems. They also experienced accelerated aging and organ damage. AAEM is suggesting that doctors prescribe non-GMO diets for their patients.

GMO plants that are developed to be pest resistant are engineered so that the pesticide is in all parts of the plant and cannot be washed off; therefore, you can’t avoid eating the pesticide when you eat the fruit or vegetable. “In 2011, Canadian researchers reported that 93% of pregnant women’s blood and 80% of their fetal cord blood samples contained a toxin found in a GE corn that produces its own pesticide (Bt corn).” The EPA classifies these GM crops as pesticides.

GMO crops contain an antibiotic marker.This increased use of antibiotics can play a role in the loss of antibiotic effectiveness.

Studies found that, in the process of genetically modifying an organism, new and unintended proteins have been created. Proteins are the substances that can act as an allergen. The result is that possible new allergens are introduced to our food supply.

“Dr. Don Huber, an internationally recognized plant pathologist and professor emeritus at Purdue University, has discovered an organism, brand new to science, related to GM corn and soy appears to be responsible for plant death, as well as infertility and spontaneous abortion in animals given GM feed. The organism is especially troubling as there’s strong evidence this infectious agent promotes disease in BOTH plants and mammals, which is extremely rare.”

Currently, five companies control over seventy-five percent of the world’s commercial seed supply. And these companies have been patenting their GM seeds and making the non-GM seeds less and less available. Domestic and international farmers can no longer save their seeds for replanting without paying a yearly royalty to the biotech seed companies. As one Iowa farmer said, “You know, I held out for years on buying them GE seeds, but now I can’t get conventional seeds anymore. They just don’t carry ‘em.” Is it moral and just that a few companies can patent nature and claim ownership? And how secure can our food supply be when just a few corporations own the rights to the crop seeds?

In spite of all these reasons for concern, you might think that GM crops are needed to feed the world. However, the jury is out on how effective GM crops are at increasing crop yields:

In spite of this (health) risk, the biotechnology industry claims that GM foods can feed the world through production of higher crop yields. However, a recent report by the Union of Concerned Scientists reviewed 12 academic studies and indicates otherwise: ‘The several thousand field trials over the last 20 years for genes aimed at increasing operational or intrinsic yield (of crops) indicate a significant undertaking. Yet none of these field trials have resulted in increased yield in commercialized major food/feed crops, with the exception of Bt corn.’ However, it was further stated that this increase is largely due to traditional breeding improvements.—American Academy of Environmental Medicine

In addition, “we produce 4600 calories per person per day, so there is enough food to feed twice the present population.” These are the words of Hans Herren, Ph.D., president of the Millennium Institute. He also states:

We already produce more food than needed; despite this we have 950 million people hungry. In India food is rotting in warehouses, yet India has the highest childhood malnutrition rate in the world.

The problem is the type of food that is grown (commodities instead of local food staple crops), distribution, corruption, and waste.

A third of the world’s entire food supply could be saved by reducing waste – or enough to feed 3 billion people; and this would still leave enough surplus for countries to provide their populations with 130 per cent of their nutritional requirements. …We can all be part of the solution.–Feeding the 5000

Genetically modified crops (also known as GMOs, GM, and genetically engineered–GE) are a “new form of slavery.” These are the words of Cardinal Peter Turkson, the head of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. He went on to state the negative impacts that GM crops have on the economy and the environment.

Due to biotech patenting of seeds, which results in the need for farmers to constantly buy new seeds, synthetic fertilizers and pesticides (something not necessarily needed with non-GMO crops), farmers—both domestic and international—have lost the ability to make decisions on their own land. Farmers are catch in a cycle of debt and are dependent on the dictates of the large biotech corporations.

The increased number of farmer suicides in India is an international example. These words of an Indian villager regarding one of the farmers who committed suicide illustrate this: “He was strangled by these magic seeds. They sell us the seeds, saying they will not need expensive pesticides but they do. We have to buy the same seeds from the same company every year. It is killing us. Please tell the world what is happening here.”

Domestically, this quote from Iowa farmer Earl Sime, who describes himself as a Republican who has been with the Farm Bureau for fifty years, gives an idea of what life on the farm has become under this GMO-dominated system of farming: “Corporations will have you from stem to stern, from ship to shore. There will be control, control, control…. The only thing you’re going to be is a tractor jockey. Just a tractor driver. They’ll own the final product.… That’s why you’ve got farmers saying it ain’t fun anymore.”

If you live in California, vote YES on PROP 37. And support the passage of this ballot measure in whatever way you can.

“Perhaps the rebuilding of the body and spirit is the greatest service derivable from our forests, for what worth are material things if we lose the character and quality of people that are the soul of America.”–Arthur Carhart, Forest Service Landscape Architect, 1919

Today, September 29, is National Public Lands Day. Here is a list of some California public lands that you might visit–today or any day.

Big Ag is dropping big money on it’s effort to defeat California’s LabelGMO ballot measure (Prop 37). It’s a David and Goliath battle. Polls show a lot of support for requiring labeling of GMO foods. But a lot of money can get out a lot of false information and has defeated many issues that went into the race with strong polls. Prop 37 will only be successful with a strong grassroots effort. Read the letter from Pamm Larry, the “Initial Instigator & Chief Rabble Rouser” behind the LabelGMO campaign, to see what the Label GMOs campaign is up against. And please help in whatever way you can.

Dear Wonderful Volunteers-

The Secretary of State site just logged in a huge influx of donations for our opposition. See the new piece on the CRTK site. http://www.carighttoknow.org/10_million We believe this is because they have polled and see they are in trouble. After being at the GOP convention this last weekend, I can personally tell you that when folks hear the opposition’s talking points first, they believe the twists and lies. We only have days before the opposition starts their commercials to confuse the general public. WE MUST GET OUT ON THE STREETS NOW!! It’s time to focus on the streets again…get out there in front of stores, at festivals, street fairs, and farmer’s markets. Reach out to your churches and local groups….get personal endorsements…TONS of them.The time to act is now – don’t wait for somebody else to start an event. YOU can win this campaign. YOU can organize your friends and family as volunteers. YOU can secure votes by simply having conversations with everyday people. So please, put aside an hour or more to go talk to people at your local grocery store, farmer’s market, or coffee shop. It’s simple – just pick a spot and enter the details here http://www.carighttoknow.org/events No event is too small! The downloadable toolkit is here - https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B-DSa37GBvPqc3ZHT0dyOTNyMjQ This has everything you need to print at home and get started.